Genre Fiction
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The Haunting of Alejandra: A Novel
A woman is haunted by the Mexican folk demon La Llorona in this "utterly terrifying and wholly immersive . . . story about generational trauma, colonization, systemic oppression, and the horror at the heart of motherhood" (Library Journal, starred review).
"Castro is one of the most exciting genre authors on the scene right now, and this might be her most powerful book yet."-Paste (Most Anticipated Horror Novels of 2023)
Alejandra no longer knows who she is. To her husband, she is a wife, and to her children, a mother. To her own adoptive mother, she is a daughter. But they cannot see who Alejandra has become: a woman struggling with a darkness that threatens to consume her.
Nor can they see what Alejandra sees. In times of despair, a ghostly vision appears to her, the apparition of a crying woman in a ragged white gown.
When Alejandra visits a therapist, she begins exploring her family's history, starting with the biological mother she never knew. As she goes deeper into the lives of the women in her family, she learns that heartbreak and tragedy are not the only things she has in common with her ancestors.
Because the crying woman was with them, too. She is La Llorona, the vengeful and murderous mother of Mexican legend. And she will not leave until Alejandra follows her mother, her grandmother, and all the women who came before her into the darkness.
But Alejandra has inherited more than just pain. She has inherited the strength and the courage of her foremothers-and she will have to summon everything they have given her to banish La Llorona forever.
"Castro is one of the most exciting genre authors on the scene right now, and this might be her most powerful book yet."-Paste (Most Anticipated Horror Novels of 2023)
Alejandra no longer knows who she is. To her husband, she is a wife, and to her children, a mother. To her own adoptive mother, she is a daughter. But they cannot see who Alejandra has become: a woman struggling with a darkness that threatens to consume her.
Nor can they see what Alejandra sees. In times of despair, a ghostly vision appears to her, the apparition of a crying woman in a ragged white gown.
When Alejandra visits a therapist, she begins exploring her family's history, starting with the biological mother she never knew. As she goes deeper into the lives of the women in her family, she learns that heartbreak and tragedy are not the only things she has in common with her ancestors.
Because the crying woman was with them, too. She is La Llorona, the vengeful and murderous mother of Mexican legend. And she will not leave until Alejandra follows her mother, her grandmother, and all the women who came before her into the darkness.
But Alejandra has inherited more than just pain. She has inherited the strength and the courage of her foremothers-and she will have to summon everything they have given her to banish La Llorona forever.
Editorial Reviews
"The provocative novel is haunting and packed with dark secrets."-Today
"Creepy yet insightful."-Culturess
"Castro is one of the most exciting genre authors on the scene right now, and this might be her most powerful book yet."-Paste Magazine, Most Anticipated Horror Novels of 2023
"V. Castro's The Haunting of Alejandra isn't your typical horror novel. Follow along as Alejandra digs into her past and taps into the power of her ancestors so she can save her future."-People en Español
"V. Castro's heroine is haunted by the spirit of La Llorona. . . . She must go to a curandera and process her personal and generational trauma . . . in what also functions as a perfect metaphor for . . . seeing the societal structures and history that contribute to our present-day malaise."-CrimeReads
"Speaking of Goddesses, Castro is the goddess of Indigenous Mexican Indigenous horror, and I also can't wait for The Haunting of Alejandra."-Literary Hub
"[A] ravishing and provocative literary horror novel about motherhood, family legacy, and self-discovery."-Jump Scares
"Provocative, haunting, and packed with secrets."-Electric Literature
"The Haunting of Alejandra is deeply rooted in culture and beautifully explores diaspora and generational trauma through the lens of the supernatural horror genre."-Zoraida Córdova, author of The Inheritance of Orquídea Divina
"A powerful story about motherhood, trauma, love, and the ways that myths can and should be rewritten . . . If you're a horror fan and you haven't picked up V. Castro, you need to fix that."-Sarah Langan, author of Good Neighbors
"V. Castro charts a terrifying legacy of tears with The Haunting of Alejandra, an empathic epic th...
"Creepy yet insightful."-Culturess
"Castro is one of the most exciting genre authors on the scene right now, and this might be her most powerful book yet."-Paste Magazine, Most Anticipated Horror Novels of 2023
"V. Castro's The Haunting of Alejandra isn't your typical horror novel. Follow along as Alejandra digs into her past and taps into the power of her ancestors so she can save her future."-People en Español
"V. Castro's heroine is haunted by the spirit of La Llorona. . . . She must go to a curandera and process her personal and generational trauma . . . in what also functions as a perfect metaphor for . . . seeing the societal structures and history that contribute to our present-day malaise."-CrimeReads
"Speaking of Goddesses, Castro is the goddess of Indigenous Mexican Indigenous horror, and I also can't wait for The Haunting of Alejandra."-Literary Hub
"[A] ravishing and provocative literary horror novel about motherhood, family legacy, and self-discovery."-Jump Scares
"Provocative, haunting, and packed with secrets."-Electric Literature
"The Haunting of Alejandra is deeply rooted in culture and beautifully explores diaspora and generational trauma through the lens of the supernatural horror genre."-Zoraida Córdova, author of The Inheritance of Orquídea Divina
"A powerful story about motherhood, trauma, love, and the ways that myths can and should be rewritten . . . If you're a horror fan and you haven't picked up V. Castro, you need to fix that."-Sarah Langan, author of Good Neighbors
"V. Castro charts a terrifying legacy of tears with The Haunting of Alejandra, an empathic epic th...
Readers Top Reviews
Tonya S.
Motherhood has been no picnic for Alejandra. She has always felt broken in that regard, unable to find the bliss that children are supposed to bring. Alejandra just isn't able to connect with her kids and often longs for her life before she had them. These feelings bring her to the brink of desolation, and there Alejandra is visited by a vision of terror. A deadly entity is stalking Alejandra and her family, and it will be the absolute fight of her life to survive. Wow. This book goes places others fear to tread, into the fear and pain of being a mother. I learned so much about Mexican folklore and really connected with the story. If you're looking for something creepy and crawling with dread, definitely check out The Haunting of Alejandra. It's available everywhere you buy books now. Thank you to Netgalley and Del Rey Books for the chance to review this advance copy.
Erica L Toolekathlee
A young woman, Alejandra, struggles with darkness and trying to find her identity while coping with the burdens of being a wife and mother. Visited by a ghostly vision in white, La Llorona, in her darkest hours she begins to question her sanity. After visiting a therapist, she begins exploring her matriarchal family history and realizes the women who came before her were also haunted by the specter. She will have to pull from her foremother’s strength and courage if she wants to save herself The Haunting of Alejandra is a tale of identity and despair which follows one woman's haunting by La Llorona, a vengeful and murderous mother of Mexican legend. This was the perfect addition to my fall reading list and I don't see many tales about La Llorona so I was pretty excited to start this one. I wanted to love this novella so much but I had such a hard time with it. This novella is beautifully written but Alejandra's struggles with "darkness" were a little too overwhelming for me. I felt like this authors writing style was very similar to that of Mariana Enriquez so if you enjoy her writing style then you will probably like this author just as much. Although this wasn't a good fit for me I think many readers will really enjoy this haunting tale of Mexican folklore and history.
